1) They're probably going to be the #1 seed in the NFC this year. Considering the Falcons are already the class of the NFC South, and their AFC compe ion comes from the worst division in football -- the AFC South -- there's not a whole lot of games you can pick them to lose this season, barring serious injury. The @ 49ers and @ Panthers games are the best two guesses, and the odds are they'll win one of those, lose one of those, and lose a different (unexpected) game. I think there's a good probability that they finish 14–2 with their cupcake schedule. The other likely division winners just don't have nearly as favorable of schedules. The Packers have the same @ 49ers and @ Panthers games and they also have to travel to Arizona and Denver, plus Detroit and Minnesota (they likely lose 3 or 4 out of these five, and perhaps an additional game as well, such as the Cowboys home game in mid-December assuming everyone important is back healthy). The Seahawks are already down 2 games in the NFC West, and the Cardinals have a more difficult schedule than the Falcons (though maybe not as hard as the Packers') as they play in the NFC West and plus having to travel to both Detroit and Pittsburgh, though if Big Ben's ACL is done the latter game should be a win. The Falcons have by far the easiest schedule of the NFC contenders, and should look to go 13–3 without much difficulty or 14–2 if they really go all out (and Ryan/Jones/Freeman/D-line all stay healthy... Freeman and the D-line really impressed me today in the win in Dallas, particularly in the second half).
2) That being said, they are beatable by the Cowboys with a healthy defense and Romo. The second half collapse today might end up working out in the Cowboys' favor long-term if the Falcons end up as the #1 seed by one game instead of the Packers or Cardinals. Let's face it, frozen tundra Lambeau in January is one of the most difficult places to win in the postseason in the history of sports. The Packers haven't won any championships recently due to their relative mediocrity on the road, not for a lack of dominance at home. Even if the Cowboys can beat the Packers in Green Bay in December, they should try to avoid them as much as possible in January in a building where Aaron Rodgers hasn't thrown a pick in three years, including playoffs. The Falcons proved in the first half of today's game that they are beatable by the Cowboys; the Cowboys ultimately lost because: a] the D-Line couldn't get pressure on Ryan to save their lives and b] Weeden had a few costly mental breakdowns, from the bad interception on the obvious "throw it out of bounds please" play that was essentially a pick 6, to the more critical play down 4 with the ball on 3rd down and 3 to go in Cowboys territory where he remained in a tight pocket far too long and took a sack when he probably could have either checked it down or ran for an easy first down. With Romo, Hardy, Gregory, and McClain (or at least half of those) no doubt the Cowboys would have held on to the lead today. Dez Bryant's presence would have helped, too, as the deep ball to Terrance Williams would open back up. That being said, the Cowboys are a better road team than at home, and the Falcons have been known to lose big home games in the playoffs in the Ryan era. The Cardinals wouldn't be a horrible draw, so let's hope they beat out the Packers for the #2 seed, forcing Green Bay to play a divisional game in Arizona, the Packers lose and the Cowboys (assuming they beat the #5 seed in round 1 and Atlanta in their divisional game) would match up pretty well against the Cardinals for a potential NFC Championship Game.
Falcons aren't a contender, they haven't beaten a single decent team, so far..they're also the 1st team in NFL history to win their first 3 games by 4th quarter comebacks, which mostly comes down to fortune..
They will probably finish with a high seed and choke in the playoffs like Matt Ryan teams tend to do..
They will probably finish with a high seed and choke in the playoffs like Matt Ryan teams tend to do...
This guy is just a delusional Cowboys homer. The Falcons beat the Cowboys because Weeden is a game manager and the Falcons have a good offense. Sorry to say it, but if you have a QB that's worth a , the Falcons D will choke the game.
Falcons are a contender, for the regular season le anyways. They have a very good QB, an elite WR, a good running game, and a very good offensive line. The Cowboys had all that too until the injuries. The Packers have an elite QB, an average receiving corps, and an average defense. The Cardinals have a great defense that feasts on turnovers, a good QB, a still-very good WR, but not much else on offense. Who do you'z got?
They will probably finish with a high seed and choke in the playoffs like Matt Ryan teams tend to do..
Weeden is an idiot, but the Falcons' D played well in the second half. Regardless of the D, they finally woke up in the 3rd quarter and remembered they have a top 3 receiver who is built like Lebron James.
This guy is just a delusional Cowboys homer. The Falcons beat the Cowboys because Weeden is a game manager and the Falcons have a good offense. Sorry to say it, but if you have a QB that's worth a , the Falcons D will choke the game.
Once Iupati is back the Cardinals' offensive line would be just as good as Atlanta's. You're suffering from Cowboyfan delusions right now where you're overrating the out of a team that must be super super super amazing if they're able to beat Dallas.
I'm serious. The Cowboys' D-line doesn't just get mowed down like that by anybody. DeMarco Murray averaged -5 yards per carry last week until garbage time, and the other rushers didn't do much better. True they don't have Hardy and Gregory... but they had the same guys they had last week. Nick Hayden is the weak link for sure, and he'll be out of the rotation soon. The Falcons won today because they dominated the lines of scrimmage at both ends in the second half.
You're making all these bold assumptions about the Falcons, who haven't proven much yet. Certainly they haven't proven to be better than Carolina yet. The last time Carolina played ATL, they won 41-6 and Ryan was sacked 8 times
they must be truly elite if they beat my precious Cowboys
I agree that they're a regular season contender, but I don't really believe in their defense, and I've seen how Ryan looks in the playoffs..we'll see, maybe they have taken the leap and Jones is a game-changer on his own..I'd like to see how they look vs. a team that isn't below average, though, which is something they haven't seen, yet(Cowboys are a contender, but below average without Romo and Dez)..
falcons OL has been terrible for a couple of years... did they actually get anybody to improve? or maybe the cowboys DL is just
True, Dallas is an 8–8 team as currently built with all the injuries (based on the team they trotted out today). But let's not pretend the Cowboys couldn't have beaten the Packers last year in the playoffs, forget the call on the Dez catch, but remember all the 3rd and 17, 3rd and 18, 3rd and 21 plays the Packers somehow converted when they were losing, often by a decent margin that game? You don't have those kind of conversions with Greg Hardy and Randy Gregory about to lay you out, even if you're Aaron Rodgers; you check it down, McClain or Lee makes the tackle, you better hope you're in field goal range. Let's not act like the Cowboys aren't better than their 2014 incarnation when healthy.
It's impossible to say, since they went up against an average Eagles' defense, and a terrible Giants front 7..maybe they're legit, but we won't know for a while, since their schedule is extremely easy, as OP said..
I'm not sure what Greg Hardy or Randy Gregory have to do with you saying the Atlanta Falcons O-line is really good based off of how they played today.
as I stated earlier... there's a good chance the Falcons are one-and-done in the playoffs, even as a #1 seed, particularly if they meet an elite road team like the Cowboys (Eagles!, or Giants!!) in the divisional round... my point merely illustrated that the Falcons have a great shot at being the #1 seed at the end of Week 17.
^this thread in a nuts
Their O-line is good in the same way the 49ers O-line was good in week 1 that allowed Carlos Hyde to go ham. They'll have their good days and bad days, but Ryan is a great regular season performer and they still have a top-tier receiving core including JJ. Their D-line has worked very hard to keep them in games despite an iffy secondary. But when Quinn made the adjustments to commit to stopping the runs and disallowing big gains on the little short Tom Brady or Peyton Manning-like plays from Weeden to Beasley, Dunbar, etc., the skill of the secondary became irrelevant because the Cowboys trotted out noodle armed Weeden and no Bryant. The Falcons don't face a truly elite (top 5) QB/receiving corps combination all season, so their secondary should be alright.
Panthers will tap that falcon ass like they do every year... Norman the only corner who can consistently shut down Julio. I do see them as a wildcard though
Very realistic to see them at 9-0 or 8-1 by their bye. Every game is very winningable.
Ok after their bye.
Will lose to either Indy or Vikes.
How about 8-2?
Then.....
Could go 5-1.
A 12-4 vs that schedule very realistic. I do see 13-3 before I do 11-5.
Obviously everyone of note must stay healthy.
A. Agree with your first line
B. Don't think they'll lose either of those two. Both home games. Unless Vikings surprise more than expected
C. Yes, they could definitely go 5–1 after that
D. Which would add up to 14–2. 13–3 is a definite possibility, though.
E. As with everything in football, of course.
Falcons fan here but there;s now way we're #1 in the NFC
Arizona is looking like a juggernaut and healthy DAL and GB are better
Best case scenario is the 3rd seed
The defense looks like for one half and Godly in the other, and the offense is literally just Julio screen, Julio fade, Julio slant, negative run, Julio seam. Roddy hasn't been targeted for two games straight, we lost Tamme, and Hank has drop problems.
Julio is probably the second best receiver in football behind Brown, but I fear we're gonna run him into the ground like the Cowboys did with Murray last year.
Ultimately, I have us at 9-7 and the 6th seed behind Seattle. 13-3 is a ing huge stretch.
Dat Desmond Trufant is the real deal though...targeted less than 10 total times in 3 games
He's leaped Sherman in the best CB discussion tbh.
They got mowed down because Weeden failed to do anything in the 2nd half to keep Atlanta's defense honest. Ultimately Dallas' D was out on the field too long and they gassed.
And the secondary is the worst part of the defense, tbh... tight ends like Tamme are a dime a dozen, plus he has a concussion not a torn ACL so he'll be back in 2 weeks at most... Roddy White will get back on track with the receiving game, but right now he's creating huge holes for Freeman. Negative runs? Did you even watch the game? I only recall a couple negative plays the Falcons had all game and it was only on those dumb pitch-back plays. Every time Freeman got a standard carry it went for 5+ yards.Falcons fan here but there;s now way we're #1 in the NFC
Arizona is looking like a juggernaut and healthy DAL and GB are better
Best case scenario is the 3rd seed
The defense looks like for one half and Godly in the other, and the offense is literally just Julio screen, Julio fade, Julio slant, negative run, Julio seam. Roddy hasn't been targeted for two games straight, we lost Tamme, and Hank has drop problems.
Julio is probably the second best receiver in football behind Brown, but I fear we're gonna run him into the ground like the Cowboys did with Murray last year.
Ultimately, I have us at 9-7 and the 6th seed behind Seattle. 13-3 is a ing huge stretch.
Dat Desmond Trufant is the real deal though...targeted less than 10 total times in 3 games
He's leaped Sherman in the best CB discussion tbh.
Also, 9–7 is NOT good enough to get a wild card in the strong NFC.
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